


Revelations and Revolutions

by frechi123, Hamino (frechi123)



Series: The Tunnelsquad [1]
Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Alex and Thomas still argue quite a bit, Based off of "Tunnels", Everyone is friendly enough to one another, Gen, Phillip and Theodosia aren't related to their respective parents, References both Theodosias, Tunnels AU, Underground, not Undertale
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-15
Updated: 2018-02-25
Packaged: 2019-03-17 19:44:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,037
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13666011
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/frechi123/pseuds/frechi123, https://archiveofourown.org/users/frechi123/pseuds/Hamino
Summary: Hunted.There's nowhere for any of the Hamilsquad to run. That is, until Alexander, Peggy, and James uncover and rediscover the hidden city underground.But where did it come from? How long has it been around? Can our group of 11 learn all the secrets that the King keeps and brave all their crazy adventures to expose him or will they be trapped under forever?





	1. Day 1: Minecart Saviors

**Author's Note:**

> Not only am I glad I found this, but it's kinda based around one of my favorite books, called Tunnels (along with Deeper and Freefall) with the whole underground city.
> 
> This will sort of like a journal everyone shares, so different POV will be evident. Alexander starts off with it because it was originally a spare journal he kept.
> 
> Also I can't write romance to save my life! If I can figure it out, I'll change the tags.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After they all manage to escape the kingdom, and save Angelica and Hercules from a trap, the gang finds the city after Alex, Peggy, and James get separated.

"They can't all hide forever!"

I wince. If those men find us, even a clue to trace, it's all over. I'm on my knees, trying my best to peer over the high grass with a scowl. It's one of those times where I'm glad that I'm quite short.

Right now, King George is on a spending spree... for our blood. He's not particularly pleased with us for an incident that happened just a week prior. No, I'm not going to tell you right now. It's not that important.

Okay, maybe it is, considering it's treason; it's not enough for me to want to say right now.

Long story short, he wants us dead. And right now, I don't want to get into the reason.

_Sniffle._

I turn, softening my look. Peggy Schuyler, the youngest of us, looks like as if she might cry. Hercules Mulligan takes notice of this, and tries to calm her down. She's curled in on herself, whispering how she wants to be reunited with the others, and he's beside her, stroking the top of her curly hair, reassuring that we will get there soon.

Among us hiding in the forest right now are Peggy, Hercules, Angelica Schuyler, James Madison, and me, Alexander Hamilton. Terrified. Angelica fumbles with her walkie talkie that Samuel Seabury smuggled us three days ago, pressing a button and holding it up to her ear.

"Lafayette?" she whispers. "What's going on? Are you guys all right?"

There's a crackle of static, and then the Marquis de Lafayette (aka Gilbert) speaks up. "Oui, but poor Eliza is freaking out. She wanted to be in your group so badly, but there was too much risk about that move. We had to be as unpredictable as possible."

It's true. The King is somehow eerily perceptive when it comes to the people we would usually be out with. Quite creepy if you ask me. Lafayette and Angelica had suggested we all split up so we're not caught. We did our best to split up our little friend groups. Lafayette's group, consisting of Thomas Jefferson, John Laurens, Maria Reynolds, Eliza Schuyler, Aaron Burr, and himself, are hiding out in a cave not too far from us, only a couple miles down the road outside the city. They escaped before us; we distracted the guards and let them get out first.

"Tell her we'll be united soon. We just have to get out of city limits first, and it's quite hard to do with the King's guards patrolling outside." She sighs then, telling him they'll talk later, and puts it back in her bag. "Let's move. I don't think they'll hear us now."

James is lying on the ground, slightly trapped by the bush he is hiding behind. Herc and I help pull him to a crouching position and then mosey along behind the Schuylers.

We've managed to cover a mile before Peggy and I both run smack into some trees, sustaining some slightly bloody noses. After Angelica patches us up, we keep moving.

Not only a few minutes later does an arrow fly into our vicinity. There's a note attached to it, and James quickly pulls it off and ducks down to read it.

"'We're going to find you all, and I'll have your blood for what you did to me!' Great, they might know we're in this area."

"I hope they didn't catch the others," I say.

Within an hour we're all dead tired, and decide to take refuge in a cave up ahead. We're all sitting around our makeshift fire trying to decide our next course of action.

"I think we're in the clear," I say. I start to glance further down the cave. "Wait, is that a light I see?"

Everyone follows my gaze. There's a faint flicker of light down the cave.

"Do you think it's the King's guards?" asks Peggy.

Angelica shakes her head. "No way. They would have come out at the first sound of our steps. You know how on edge those guys are." Everyone nods in agreement. Then she taps her chin. "I wonder... who _is_ down there, then?"

Herc picks up a thick stick on the nearby ground and lights it with our makeshift fire. "Good thinking, Hercules," I tell him, and he hands it to me, saying, "Lead the way, Alexander."

We're all walking single file for a bit when Angelica and Hercules suddenly fall into a average sized trap without any sound from them. Peggy, James and I peer nervously over the top, our faces also laced with shock.

"Try and find help," Angelica calls up, voice still even. "We'll be fine."

We press on. There's a fork in the road and we mull over which way we should go. Unfortunately it takes too long and we doze off before we can even think more about it.

********************************************

I wake up to someone tapping lightly on my shoulder. I raise my head from my folded arms and knees and open my eyes. Peggy and James are still asleep in front of me, laying in front of the left entrance to the fork. I had fallen asleep on the right. I slowly turn my head to see who else could have possibly touched me and come face to face with a sea of freckles.

"Laurens!" I cry out, suddenly. "Don't scare me like that!"

He grins. "Good to see you too, Alexander."

"Where's everyone else?" I ask as he slides down beside me.

"Taking so much time trying to ease their way out," John says with a roll of his eyes. He cups his hands and whisper-shouts, "Guys, come on out! It's just Alex, James and Peggy."

The other two in question sit up, stretching and rubbing their eyes. As if on cue, footsteps can be heard beside them as people slowly start coming into view.

"Eliza!" Peggy cries out, jumping up to embrace her sister.

"We told you we were coming, Peggy," Eliza says a bit tearfully. Maria appears moments later to join their embrace.

Aaron and Thomas embrace James, and Lafayette embraces John and me. After those pleasantries, Lafayette and Eliza ask, "where are Angelica and Hercules?"

"They fell into a trap!" James cries out. "We have to help get them out."

************************************

Moments later, all nine of us are peering worriedly in the hole. Angie and Herc have grown a bit tough to see by the torches that John and I carry.

"Are you okay, Angelica?!" Eliza shouts down.

"Hercules, how did you and her even fall in there?!" Lafayette shouts after that.

"It was dark, okay??" Hercules yelled up. "It didn't even make a sound and neither did we!"

James turns back. "Maybe we can find some vines around here and pull them up. Thomas, you, Alexander, and Peggy come with me. There might be some back through this way."

********************************************

"I thought you were over all this argument!" Peggy says warily.

She, James, and I are traveling along the right side of the aforementioned fork now. Thomas went left by himself because of some stupid argument that he and I got into. Yeah, I'm not proud of that. I told him that he could have taken James or Peggy with him at least, but he refused. Especially when James and even Peggy sided with me on it. Like I said, it was stupid, so I barely remembered it.

I shrug, but not without feeling guilty. "What could I do? You know I tend to get overexcited, shoot off at the mouth. Maybe you should have just taped my mouth shut."

" _Ow!_ " James cries out suddenly. He's in front of us, so Peggy and I bump into him and stop. He's hopping on one foot and muttering a slew of curses.

"What happened??" I ask. "Why are you jumping about like that?!"

He doesn't say anything, just points to what he kicked. We peer around him to see a minecart sitting on tracks. I hold the torch closer to it. Beside it is a switch.

"Where do you think it leads?" I ask.

"I don't know," says Peggy, "but anything beats walking and crawling along the rocky ground for vines. We'll probably just grab them as we go."

"Plus I won't have to worry about hurting my foot any further," James points out, and then climbs into the middle of the cart.

"Good point," says Peggy, climbing to the seat in front of him.

"Ready?" I ask, taking the one behind him, hand on the switch, ready to pull.

They turn back to look at me. James gently takes the torch and deposits it into a little slot designed to hold such things. "Let's go."

I pull the switch, and the cart creaks forward with such difficulty that all three of us have to cover our ears over the deafening sound. It starts running smoothly and slowly afterwards, and we keep our eyes out for any vines.

As it progresses we notice all sorts of interesting carvings along the wall. Peggy reads some of them as we pass.

"Do you think someone was here before us?" she asks, after reading a plethora of them (about 14), leaning against the edge with her forearms.

"I suppose," I say. "Carvings as interesting as these don't carve themselves. They tell quite the story, even the short ones."

James smirks. "Perhaps you can learn from them, Alexander, and take that hint."

"Oh, hush," I say, trying not to giggle.

**************************************

I can't remember when we all fell asleep (it's hard to keep time when you have no such devices around), but I remember waking up to a bump, and darkness, as the torch stick seems to have fallen away, and then the feeling of my stomach dropping. We are going down somewhere, no walls or ceiling around, just the emptiness of the cave.

"Peggy? James? Are you awake?"

James turns back. "I am, she's not. What happened to the walls?"

"I don't know. I guess that's how the people constructed this place."

As soon as the last word leaves my lips, the tracks stop. But not our downward ascension, which does wake Peggy up then. All three of us cling to one another and scream as we plunge deeper into the darkness.

**************************************

***Thomas's POV***

" _What do you mean you separated from them?!_ " snaps Angelica.

I manage to find some vines so we can help pull Angelica and Hercules up. It's not until they are on safe ground that Eliza wonders where Alexander, James, and Peggy are, and I have to answer truthfully.

"What were you even arguing about this time?!" Maria, who has been silent for most of our trip here, takes up the cry.

"Unimportant. But we know which we way they went."

"That doesn't mean they'll be right there where you left them!" says John. "And even if you didn't want to follow him, why didn't you take James or Peggy?!"

"I bet they agreed with him," Eliza says snottily. "You know how Thomas gets about this sort of thing."

My fists are balled at my sides. I don't want to do anything I would regret. "Well, let's go get them then."

We walk in a 2 x 4. Lafayette, who is in the opposite line on my side, mutters, "We're going to get so off course now." I slump my shoulders a bit.

**************************************

***Alexander's POV***

Our throats are absolutely sore from screaming. It's the only thing we have on our minds, so it takes a while to notice we're still moving, but no longer falling.

I'm sprawled out on the floor in star formation, face up. James is on my left and Peggy is on my right, in the same curled up positions. The cart has been propped up by the seats on the vehicle we have fallen into, taking up only one row of it.

"Are we dead?" asks James, though his voice is scratchy and we can scarcely hear him.

"Nope," say Peggy and I, at the same time, nearly as bad as James has it.

We worm our way out from under the cart and then raise ourselves up, albeit a bit wobbly.

"We're on a tram?" James narrows his eyes, simply because he's tired.

Peggy slumps into one of the seats in front of the cart. "It would seem so. Where do you think this thing goes?"

I slide in beside Peggy. "Le's just pray for no more free fall right now," I say, starting to drift off, as James slides in beside me.

**************************************

***Thomas's POV***

"I think there was a minecart here," says Hercules, pointing to the tracks and the switch, which he moves back into place.

I glance around the area until I see a piece of the torch stick lying on the ground. "Weren't they carrying one of these?" I ask, picking it up and looking at it.

A loud creaking noise stops anyone from answering me right away. Three mine carts roll in slowly from a sudden gap in the wall that briskly closes as soon as they are all chained, in a line. No one even knows what to say.

"Should we get on board?" Eliza asks finally, taking a step towards the carts.

Angelica holds her back. "Wait! Liz, we don't know where they go."

"Obviously Alexander, James and Peggy must have taken one," Lafayette says with an eye roll. "Anything to avoid walking far."

We all freeze up at the screams we hear, faintly down the tunnel.

"James!" Aaron and I cry out.

"Peggy!" Angelica, Maria, and Eliza join in.

"Alex!" Hercules, John, and Lafayette are the last to take up the cry.

Everyone throws worried looks around, until Eliza runs up to the very first cart and jumps in the front.

"What are you doing?!" Angelica exclaims.

"It's the only way we might reach them in time!" she shrieks back.

Angelica sighs, hopping into the front of the second cart, with Maria behind her and Aaron behind both of them. I hop in the front of the last cart, and Hercules takes the back. Lafayette takes the back of the first cart, and John takes the seat in front of him.

Aaron turns to face us, "pull the switch, Hercules!"

As soon as he does the carts shoot forward. We all grab an edge to keep ourselves from falling forward. Maria, Angelica and Eliza's hair are whipping furiously with the conjured wind.

"Why is this moving so fast?!" yells Maria, covering her face in fear.

"I don't know!" cry three voices in unified response: Lafayette, John, and myself.

"Are we going to die?! Is there no way to stop this thing?!" wails Angelica, trying to keep calm but failing.

As it slants down, Eliza says, soothingly, "We'll be okay... we'll be okay..."

She repeats this even as the tracks end, even as we spiral into the dark, even as the rest of us scream our lungs out (except Aaron who simply stared down with a horrified expression).

Even through the horror of it all, I want to believe her.

I shut my eyes.

Trying to convince myself to believe this voice.

**************************************

***Alexander's POV***

Silence.

Everything is still.

I open my eyes. Peggy and James are looking at me with tired expressions.

"What do we do now, Alexander?" asks James, rising to his feet.

He sticks out a hand to help me up. "We'll have to get out of here first," I say, taking it. Then I turn to Peggy and pull her up gently. She's still kind of asleep on her feet.

"Where are we going?" she asks.

"We'll have to see," I reply to her.

Linked in hands, we slowly make our way to the front of the tram, heading out the door, James leading, me after him, and Peggy after me.

Everywhere looks like rock, with maybe some regular looking appearing items in the mix. We take a seat on the fairly normal bench behind a rocky shape help desk room, wanting to stay out of sight for now in case someone - or something - came through here.

"When we said that we were going to escape to a place all our own and better than under King George's rule, I'm guessing we didn't mean underground in this - and I have to admit it - fabulously civilized looking cave," says James, throwing his hands up to emphasize the point. Peggy and I giggle at this. James hardly ever admits things (something that Thomas probably taught him, no doubt), but when he does, he doesn't mind it.

There's a loud crunch coming from the right of us, and we all freeze in fear. "I don't think we want to meet what made that sound..." moans Peggy, who is starting to run out of the desk area and in the opposite direction from the tram, further down another tunnel. James and I jump up and hastily flee after her.

The sound gets louder, and we run much faster despite it getting much darker as we pass through. Halfway through, James trips over something in the dark and howls. Peggy and I stop dead in our tracks and turn around.

"Leave me!" he cries out. "I don't want that thing to get you."

"Never!" I snap. We hurry back to him.

"We're not leaving you," Peggy assures firmly.

Something towers over us. We can't see it but we can sense it.

"It will have to deal with us all then," I say, as the air suddenly changes. The scent is too intoxicating... I pass out.

**************************************

" _Ow!_ "

James's voice is right beside me but I can't feel him. My arms and legs feel oddly restrained in the position they are in. I open my eyes once more to see that I have been strapped in a star formation to the wall. I assume that James and Peggy have the same fate befall them, but as I look down on the floor, I see James instead tied up in a rope with his knees forcefully drawn in to his body by it.

"Where's Peggy?" I ask him.

"Up here..." We both glance up to see her contained in a glass cover on the ceiling. It's not very high, so the glass is level with my face. It's lengthwise, and her head is facing me. It appears as tight as a cocoon, as Peggy can hardly move and is slowly starting to panic.

"How did we even get here?" I wonder aloud, before something suddenly sticks me in the leg. " _Ow!_ "

James raises an eyebrow, as best as I can see. "It looks like a dart of some sort."

"Well, aren't you a smart one?"

We all jump as best as we can at the voice. There's no sign of anyone else in the room with us.

"Up there!" says Peggy, who manages to turn herself even a smidgen to attempt a point in the right direction. We follow her gaze to the silhouette of a person slowly descending into the room.

"Who is that?!" I whisper-shout furiously.

"I don't know!" James says back. If he could, he would have probably shrugged.

"Do you come to enslave us all again?" the voice asks. "Have you taken us for fools?"

"What are you talking about?" asks Peggy, from her encasing.

"For years you Surface people have tried to come down and snatch your land for your own use." ( _Hmm, now where have I heard THAT before?_ ) "We were sick of it. We chased you out of here, fair and square." They finally come to the light, and the man's dark orange eyes narrow down at us. "You didn't think we'd be ready, did you?"

"Ready for what?!" all three of us cry at the same time.

"Guards!" Within moments the room is filled with similarly dressed men with bodies that would put poor Hercules to shame. They open the encasing and Peggy hits the floor. Then they cut our ropes and James has to move fast to keep me from doing the same.

We huddle in one heap on the floor. "What do you wish to do to us?"

All the man did was grin wickedly. Our eyes cast themselves downward to the floor as they lift us up and carry us away.

_I can't believe I'm saying this, but.... where's King George when you need him?_

~Alexander

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to comment your thoughts and constructive criticism ^_^


	2. Day 2: Operation: Underground Mysteries

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The captured trio asks some questions to the citizens of the town in which they find themselves held hostage. Meanwhile, the vigilant octet find a way to make this town feel more at home to them.

***James's POV***

"...Where are we?"

I raise my head the best I can. I can't move anything else. 

Alexander, Peggy, and I have been tied down to the bench in which we now sit. Alex is in the middle, I'm on the left, Peggy's on the right. Our anxious eyes scan the room as one. We're absolutely terrified. Alex moves a bit sluggishly and I assume it's the dart finally kicking in.

"Try to stay awake," I say, worriedly glancing at Alex, whose eyes are glazing over.

"Or _alive_ ," Peggy adds anxiously, staring into his face.

"We're not savages, you know." 

We look up to see the man from earlier enter the room. Right now, he is sporting a green and orange bandana. Alex shoots up at his voice, and his face appears more terrified than mine or Peggy's.

"We don't just kill our own for fun, we have more respect than that," he continues. He narrows his eyes. "You aren't our own though." Then he walks up closer and leans into our faces. "I admit, you seem confused. Do you not remember what your people have done here?"

I raise an eyebrow. "Who do you refer to? I'm afraid my friends and I don't follow."

"Years ago," he starts, waving his arms about and sauntering around the room, "a ruler of the surface tried to destroy our way of life. 'Manifest Destiny', he called it. 'Be my subjects, you are below me.' And when we refused, he promised to come back. And he did. We were engulfed in a war for months, losing many of our own before we finally managed to drive them out. We swore one thing: that the blonde curly headed demon that plagued our land would never torture us again." And when he sees our shock-ridden faces, he crosses his arms. "Is any of this sounding familiar to you?"

"Only the 'blonde curly head demon' you speak of that we've strived to separate from for years,' Alexander spats at him. "We have committed unspeakable acts against him, and now he wants our heads."

"We would appreciate it if you never associated us with the horror that is... _King George_." Peggy's voice drips with venom as she spits out his name.

I cross my arms. "Clearly this is something he didn't want getting out. If word got out about what he tried here, he'd be finished."

"I didn't even think they have slaves in Britain," says Alexander.

Peggy shrugs to the best of her ability. "That's probably why he let them stay here instead of taking them. It'd be a surprise if we actually knew anything about our traitorous mother country at all, really."

We start to talk amongst each other. Just discussing the king between our group makes our blood boil. (All 11 of us are a part of a secret group we made up; we're called the Revelationairies. We've seeked to find epiphanies within our old town and have so far found none.)

A loud bang suddenly makes us all stop talking. The large man has slammed his hand on the table in the far corner of the room (when did he get over there?!) and now there is a slight crack in it. We all cringe at the sight. He sucks in some air and lets it out, repeatedly, all while casting his eyes down at the floor. Then he raises his eyes to us, and I see some regret in them.

"It appears I might have misjudged you," he says finally. He comes over to us and cuts us loose. We all slump to the ground seeing as our limbs decided to go to sleep. "I know you will not accept my apologies, but heed them anyway. It's alright if you don't understand our apprehensiveness, but still lend an ear so you are not ignorant to the information in the room."

All three of us nod solemnly. "What is your name?" Alexander asks, doing his best to look up to him. He is the groggiest of all of us because of the stun dart (they explained to us that they didn't use actual tranquilizers down here, 'it's inhumane', they said).

"I hardly wish to remember my old name," says the man with a shudder. "It bring back unpleasant memories. Just call me Roman. Can you do that?"

We nod again. "I think we can manage," Peggy answers. "I'm Margarita Schuyler, but everyone calls me Peggy." She motions to Alex. "This is Alexander Hamilton. He has the sharpest tongue of all of us." He blushes at this. Then she motions to me. "That is James Madison. Fights for his rights even at his sickest moments, and trust me, he's had a great many."

I snicker at this. It's true that getting sick is such an oftenity (meaning frequent event) for me that they've made a schedule to see who comes over when to try and nurse me back to health. The schedule goes by the friend groups, so it always varies from one (Maria) to four (The Rev. Set) caretakers at a time and I wouldn't want it any other way.

Roman holds out a hand for all of us to shake, and then to help us to our feet, one by one. He starts to walk out of the room. "Follow me, I'm sure you're curious to learn about the way we live about here, aren't you?"

He takes Peggy's hand, who takes Alexander's, who takes mine, and we all head out of the room in a single file chain, mixed feelings about learning about where we were, whether or not we could actually plan to stay... and our missing friends.

_I wonder if they'll ever find us?_

***********************************************************

***Lafayette's POV***

"We are, how you say, in deep trouble now, are we not?" I say, hoarsely, finally breaking the silence.

One fall and train ride later, we are all staring out at an internalized mountain top at the base after leaving the station. It was a long jump down but no one was scared. We had to dodge all sounds and noises we heard, which was amazing how we did considering how many of us there were. 

We decided to split up into two groups: one to find shelter and another to find nourishment. In the first group was Eliza, Aaron, Hercules, and Maria, climbing a steep cliff to make sure we could stay on some sort of high ground at least. Meanwhile, we the second group, consisting of John, Thomas, Angelica, and myself, are trying to ponder ways to get up into the rocky mountains without being spotted to reach a particularly ripe fruit tree growing at the top (noticed from our initial train ride).

Angelica nods. "I suppose so, Lafayette. What are the odds of a well thought out cave like this? it runs so deep, we might have a hard time trying to climb our way out."

"Would it be so bad if we wanted to stay down here?" asks John. "I mean, it's far away from King George and the rest of them. And, like you said, Angelica, it's well thought out. It's possible others may have survived down here."

Thomas tilts his head. "What would make them want to carve out a cave for living so exquisite anyway? Not that I want to complain, but you'd think that people that live down here - " he gestures around him " - wouldn't take so well to people living up there - " he points straight up " - anymore."

"You may have a point, mon ami," I say, turning to him. "Someone must have chased them away, made them have to go to extreme measures to hide. I guess they thought they would be spotted elsewhere as long as they were up above."

Angelica, who has spotted a rope a good ways away, walks over and extends it. "Let's do what they do. We'll find our way down here." She throws the rope in a loop and pulls hard. Then she turns back to the rest of us. "Besides, how on earth would King George even find us underground?!"

***********************************************************

***Alexander's POV***

Tired.

Led along.

Conflicted.

All things that are happening or that I'm feeling at this exact second.

Roman still leads us down corridors of doors and we're not sure what to make of them. All the doors are uniform sans the room numbers that vary greatly in quantity that set them apart.

_Oh god, please don't lock us up. The others might never find us if he does that._

He throws open one of the doors - room 1776 (sidenote: ...very funny, Aaron Burr, sir) and ushers us inside. 

"It's the best we can do on such short notice," Roman says with a shrug as he stands in the doorway. "Geronita will bring you lunch, if you want anything, soon. Make yourselves at home, you may be here a while."

He cautiously shuts the door, and all three of us look at each other, unsure what to say, unsure what to do, until a yawn is shared among all of us.

"We'll have to establish our next course of action when we're all fully awake," I say, clearly drooping. James and Peggy nod in unison sleepy agreement.

Across the room from us is a bed nearly the size of a tennis court, adorned with varying covers and pillows. It amazes us how it fits with everything else in the room. We waste no time flinging ourselves onto the pillowy depths, taking covers of our own and yet staying so close. We can not afford to split up in our situation now.

***********************************************************

***Eliza's POV (12 hours later)***

"Come in, come in! Have you found shelter yet?" John's voice echoes through the walkie talkie.

After a long day (or close, it takes us about 12 hours according to Aaron's watch) of finding, clearing and constructing adequate shelter, all four of us are wiped out. Aaron is slumped on the couch in our sitting area with Hercules beside him, who is twirling his beanie on his finger. Meanwhile, I'm in our dining area, talking to the others via walkie talkie while Maria attempts to tidy the kitchen. (We told her it was fine but she insisted. She gets that perfectionist view from Alexander.)

"More like we built shelter, and by God did it take forever. We're sorry it took so long."

"At least you tried to keep us updated," comes Angelica's voice from the device. "Lafayette went to go find more food in the vicinity, so we're still in the same place you left us. Should we climb the cliff?"

"Yes, and I'll come out there to guide you so you don't get lost afterwards. We don't want you guys getting lost, too." At that, I think of James, Peggy, and Alexander. Oh, how I hope nothing too bad got them.

"Take someone with you," says Thomas. "It seems too dangerous to go out alone."

"Hmm, okay. Keep in touch."

"Will do."

After I set the device down, I turn to Hercules. "Herc, will you come with me so we can show the others back here?"

He looks up to me, and then glances at Aaron who has fallen asleep on his shoulder. "Uh, I might have a slight issue here," he says with a chuckle.

I laugh back. "Quite alright. I'll ask Maria, then."

I poke my head into the kitchen where Maria has fallen asleep standing. I laugh quietly before walking over and tapping her lightly on the shoulder. She jumps, arms swinging a bit before her eyes finally land on me, as I giggle more from a bit further back in an attempt to get out of the way.

"Liz! Don't do that!" she says with a playful pout.

I gesture around. "Looks like you finally finished the kitchen."

"Oh, I finished an hour ago," she says with a dismissive wave. My eyes widen.

"Why didn't you come out earlier?! You must be quite sore from sleeping in such a position!"

She bends back a bit and I hear a pop. "I'll be fine, don't worry. Did you need something?"

I nod. "Yeah, I need someone to accompany me to usher John, Thomas, Angie, and Laf over here."

"What about Hercules? He can't go with you?"

"He's kinda got a sleeping Aaron on his shoulder at the moment." We both giggle. "I don't think he wants to move him."

"That's okay. Let's go then," Maria says, slipping on her shoes and picking up the rope in the corner.

***********************************************************

A few moments later, all eight of us are within the new shelter. Maria heads back to the kitchen to cook some of the food Lafayette brings and he decides to assist her. Hercules is on the couch again, now without Aaron on his shoulder because he has carried him off to one of the many bedrooms in the house. His beanie is on his head once more, and he is playing a card game with John. Meanwhile, Thomas is outside on the balcony (an easy access to our original starting point as we can see it clearly) upstairs, lost in deep thought. Angelica and I are on the floor in the sitting room as she attempts to weave my hair.

"This may not have been what we planned," she says, as I turn carefully to look at her so as to not mess up her handiwork, "but I think we can make this work."

Hercules hums in agreement as he faces her. "Definitely our best bet, even if we weren't aware of this place."

"Now, our next course of action has to be finding James, Alex, and Peggy," says Maria, who emerges with Laf carrying many plates of fruit salad. Within moments, Thomas comes down the stairs from the balcony looking a bit dazed in thought, and Aaron comes in from down the hall looking refreshed.

"Did we miss anything?" Aaron asks while stretching, and Thomas rubs his eyes.

Lafayette shakes his head, and stoops down so that Aaron can reach the plate he is balancing on his head. "Nothing news related, really; we just finished making this fruit salad we just made. It contains cranberries and this rare one called star fruit, or at least that is what Angie calls it since it was shaped that way before Maria and I decided to cut it."

"Looks interesting," Aaron responds as Laf straightens back up.

Thomas reaches down some to take the one on Maria's head. "Aren't we going to need forks for these?"

"That's true. Aaron, would you mind grabbing some for everyone?" Maria asks, as she hands two of the three plates she still carries to me and Angie, who pins my hair in place to take them.

"Obedient servant, A. Burr, away," he says with a silly bow that makes all of us laugh as he heads inside. Lafayette hands two of his three to Hercules and John, who stop playing their card game to take them.

It doesn't take long for Aaron to return with the forks, and within seconds all of our plates are empty.

"Okay, it's official," says Hercules, who is now lying on his back on the couch with his plate on his stomach. "Underground food is way better than Surface food."

"I concur with Herc," says John, who is lying down on the ground with his legs on top on Hercules'. His plate is only a few inches away from his face, next to Aaron who has his back to the couch and his knees drawn up and his plate resting on them. Aaron nods in response.

"Imagine the things that Martha and George would cook," I say, after my hair is all said and done and I am sitting cross legged in the hallway doorway. Angie is kneeling beside me, twirling her braided handiwork in her fingers. "We know how much they like making exquisite dishes."

It's true that the Washingtons had pretty much taken us all under their wing. Alexander didn't have a family so they had taken him first. Lafayette was next seeing as he was so far from home. Henry disowned John simply because his ideals didn't match his own, and Hercules chose to leave as his parents couldn't simply understand him. So that's how the Rev Set came to be with them. What about the rest of us?

Well, Maria's abusive history ran much further than James Reynolds. Her parents did not love her either, and it was the Washingtons who saved her from her suicide attempt. (They found her crying, with pills in one hand and a knife in the other.)

Aaron wanted someone to lean on after Theodosia's disappearance. Thomas and James wanted a sense of family all their own, as they can hardly remember theirs. Family is not something that the Southern Mother-F**king Demo Reps always know. They want to know again. So there they are.

Now, as for us Schuyler Sisters, it's not that our father hated us. Quite the contrary, he loved us very much, and was okay with our beliefs because "that's who you are, who am I to change that?" No matter what, he always tried to keep us safe.

Which is why he gave himself up.

On the day we planned our escape, King George sent out guards to capture us all. He'd already gotten to the Rev Set's whereabouts, even though he didn't find them (even Lee wasn't that big a jerk to give them up and we know Washington wouldn't think of it), and you'd better believe that guy was so furious. They tore down the front door while all three of us were huddled in our upstairs sitting room, shaking in fear. Our dad rushed into the room then, looking at all of us. He knew what we did and still stood by us.

_"Go," he said. "I'll make sure they don't come after you."_

_"Daddy!" cried Peggy. "You can't do this! It's not your fault!"_

_"I will not have my daughters arrested for being freedom fighters," he said firmly. "Climb out the back window. Samuel Seabury has a walkie talkie for you at a point not to far south from here." The footsteps were charging on the stairs. He ushered us towards the window. "Please. Hide with the others. I don't want him getting his filthy hands on you."_

_Angie and Peggy climbed out the window, but I hesitated and turned back to him. I ran to him and enveloped him in a hug. "Stay safe, please?"_

_He returned it. "As will you three, I hope. I promise to see you all soon." Then I reluctantly turned away and jumped out the window, with the last thing I heard being, "You want me? Well... you've caught me._

It pains me to think about it sometimes. Most of the occupants in the room sense that I am feeling down, as Hercules and John move from their positions to wrap me in a hug with Angelica, who is stroking my cheek lightly. Not only moments later do Lafayette, Aaron, Thomas, and Maria join in.

All eight of us merely sit in a heap, contemplating on our lives and how lucky we are to have found friendship and family in one another. 

That's enough.

***********************************************************

***Peggy's POV***

I'm awoken by the smell of meat. At least, that's what I think it is as it has the familiarity but doesn't smell like any meat I've ever heard of.

I'm in the middle of the bed. Alexander is on my left and James is on my right. They're not touching me, but they are quite close and are both facing towards me.

I tap on James. "Hey, do you smell that?"

He stirs, with a congested sniff. Poor guy. "Sort of. What is that?"

"I think it's meat. Roman said someone was cooking lunch."

"Geronita, I think," says Alex, who is awake now, reaching across to the bedside table for his glasses. He puts them on and sits up. "Are we supposed to go out there and get it or will it be brought to us?"

I sit up with him. "Oh, Alexander, how you will do anything to avoid moving."

"Oh, hush," he says with a playful shove. James leans up against the headboard.

"He has a point though. Maybe Roman doesn't want his fellow citizens jumping to conclusions so soon. I mean, he did the same, and you see where that got us."

"Yeah, me hanging from encasing that I fell out of," I say, rubbing my back a bit, "and Alex was practically stretched out by the ropes and you were nearly compacted by yours. We don't need them to go to more extreme measures. I mean, considering the guards they have here, do we really want to upset them?!"

Before either of them can answer me, the door opens and in comes a old woman with a tray bearing three bowls.

"Hello travelers," she says with a slight crack in her voice. "Welcome. I've heard you've come quite a long way from home. We have not had visitors in quite some time, as I'm sure you know why."

We nod solemnly. We wouldn't want visitors either, if they were anything like King George.

She offers a gentle smile. "I am Geronita. I do the cooking in our little area here. I'm also the dorm mother of this area, so if you need anything, don't hesitate to ask." She shuffles closer. "I believe Roman told me your names." She points to James first, who sneezes. She giggles. "I'm guessing you are James?"

He reddens sheepishly. "Yep. Curse me and my sneeze timing."

Then she points at me. "You must be Peggy."

"That's me!" I say, doing a half bow as I am still sitting down. All of them laugh at my crazy antics.

"And you must be Alexander," she says, shuffling over to him and handing him the tray.

He adjusts his glasses. "Indubitably," he says with a funny accent. We all crack up again at this.

Alex passes the food along. "What is this, some kind of meat soup?" I ask, as I glance inside. It appears to look like meat that has been grinded with a broth to soak it.

"Yes," Geronita nods. "It's our famous rock boar soup, doused in chicken broth. We call them rock boars because they always are found in our rocky mountaintops."

James raises an eyebrow. "You have different species down here?!"

Geronita laughs. "It would appear so, judging on your reaction."

"Imagine if you-know-who actually went through with his plan," I spat. "He could have killed all of them off because they're so unique and different."

Alex shakes his head. "Him? No way. You know full well he'd flaunt those discoveries to anyone willing to pay to stare at things. All those other countries would be shaking with envy."

Geronita scowls along with us. I know she knows who I mean without having to say his name. Then she curtsies. "Remember, call me if you need anything. Welcome to the Underground." And with that she leaves the room.

"We might actually fit in down here," Alex says between spoonfuls. "Maybe it wasn't our plan but I think we have a shot. Let's not throw it away."

James nods in agreement, and I say, "we just have to find the others now. Do you think they came looking for us?"

"Of course they would," says Alex. "I bet they're down here, right now, searching their tails off for us.

James puts his bowl down and lies back down. "This soup made me a bit sleepy."

As if on cue, Alex and I yawn in unison. "Yeah, us too," we say, lying back down.

I can't help but notice that we are a lot closer than we were to start. Family just does that to you. You hold them close and never want to let go. As we all drop off to sleep, I dream of being reunited and belonging.

How pleasant my dreams come that day.  
_______  
{/Peggy\\}  
\-------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, Peggy must be so extra with her sign offs :P
> 
> In the next work, you will get background on the Revelationaries living at the Washingtons before they pull off their big stunt. At the time, the Schuylers are frequent visitors and everyone else has a place with them.
> 
> Also, if you saw the tags, you'll notice that Philip and Theo are not only mentioned but aren't related to their specific parents. In this AU (and in the fourth work in the making) they go missing into the Deeper and the Revelationaries find them after they are banished down there as well.
> 
> Okay, no more spoilers!! Feel free to tell me what you think ^_^


	3. Day 3: Guiding Forces

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alex, James and Peggy set out on their way to find the others. A young spirit named Ellie watches over them and guides them on their way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, spirits exist, NO JUDGING ME!
> 
> This chapter will stay in the POV's of Alexander, James, or Peggy.
> 
> It seems confusing, apologies in advance >.<

"Must you go already?" Geronita asks us the next morning.

Alex, James, and I are in the common room of Tesfore, the little area in which Geronita and Roman reside in. We tell them about our friends and family and how we miss them, and how they might actually be down here, and our plans to reunite with them.

"We can always come back," Alexander says. "We won't forget the ones who helped us out so easily."

Roman reaches behind the couch and pulls a fairly large bag from behind it. "This has got all the comfort you need. It does tend to get cold, so we got as many blankets and pillows to spare." He hands us canteens and containers with rock boar soup and starfruit salad. ("It's good, trust me," he says.)

Geronita gets up and walks out. She returns briskly with a bright red wagon that contains four edge seats and some room. "This was Theodosia's old wagon. She and her friends Philip and Ellie would go riding around in it for days." She suddenly looks very sad. "But those Creepers took her and Philip to the Deeper when they crossed too far into their territory."

"What about Ellie?" I ask.

Roman sniffs. "She died," he says. "It's rumored that 1 in every 3 kids is killed before they ever make it to the deeper. Ellie was that kid."

James gasps beside me. "What happened to her?"

"She slipped from the creeper's grasp," says Geronita. She bites her lip trying to hold back tears (clearly she is more broken up about this than Roman). "She hit her head on the crag rocks. And that was that."

We all hang our heads in solemn understanding. "We're sorry for your loss."

"It's only been a year, and it still hurts... They'd want you to have it, to make moving things much easier."

She excuses herself from the room, and Roman puts one hand on my shoulder and the other on Alex's. "Please, find a way to visit us soon. We can't take any more heartbreak down here, yeah?"

I choke up when he says this. He's only known us a day and already he'll miss us. "We'll visit," I say, trying not to cry. "And don't worry, we'll be fine." I follow James and Alexander out the door.

***********************************************************

***Alexander's POV***

It amazes me how light James Madison is. 

And how many times he manages to hurt himself.

Yep. Peggy and I are fairly sure he broke something today. We just reach the outskirts of Tesfore when he falls off a tiny cliff. Worry not, he only falls 4 feet. As soon as we try to help him out, he howls at the top of his lungs and we have to cover his mouth before he blows our cover. Geronita and Roman warned us about some of the devout Undercitizens, who won't hesitate to have our heads on a stick.

Hmm, where have I heard that before?

Anyway, I'm pulling the wagon with James inside without much effort, who is watching our stuff. Peggy's strolling along in front of me, looking at the carvings as we go, as we try to find our way back to the tram station. Obviously if they fell down here, they would have had to go the opposite way of us, right? Roman and Geronita told us, before we left, that they almost always scout the tram station for Surface items. (They were definitely surprised to find us there.)

Only a few minutes later and a random gust of wind comes out of absolutely nowhere. Peggy and I abruptly fall to the ground and the wagon overturns with our stuff trapped underneath along with James, who is screaming bloody murder after being startled out of a nap.

It's at this moment where I'm kinda glad it happens, as when we free James from under we discover buttons on the bottom. Peggy pushes the red one, and immediately the wagon flips back over and turns into the size of a fairly small sized trailer with more wiggle room to move. A door forms on the side along with a hole implied to be a window. After helping James back inside along with our stuff, we keep moving.

The wagon is now the dusty color of our rocky surroundings, making it easier for me and Peggy to hide behind any time we hear suspicious noises. 

After a good few hours when we recognize our route and are halfway back to our destination do we actually stop to rest a bit. Peggy and I head inside of the wagon and join James who has long passed out on a bench. The only thing I dream of are tram stations and unexpected winds.

***********************************************************

Next time we wake up, we find ourselves at the tram station. You can imagine our shock when we realize how far the journey would have to have been... and the fact that all three of us were asleep when it got here terrifies us even more. 

To try and calm down we enjoy some of the salad they ship with us, promising to save the soup for later, when we see the others. After we all finish there is a distinct whispery sound coming from outside. We shudder at the noise.

Nervously, we peer out of the little window and see no one else. Or at least that's what we think. In the darkest corner of the "forbidden" tunnel, there's a wispy figure standing inside. They appear to be watching us. My mouth makes a perfect O of surprise.

"You... see that too, right?" James asks in a hushed tone. Peggy and I nod wordlessly, unsure of what else to tell him. We see it and it's that simple.

The figure disappears. We all start getting a tiny bit nervous, and back away from the window. 

Now huddling under it, a harsh wind blows into the window and the window alone, and we have to cover our mouths to prevent from screaming. There's no explanation for the sudden wind. How does one even get wind underground?!

Then... it stops. Abruptly. And silhouettes of white lines enter the window. We all jump back, backing up against the walls of the wagon, shivering. I wonder vaguely if the others will come after us, and exactly what they were going to have left to trace after this thing gets us.

"Don't worry," the figure speaks, when it materializes into one. "I mean you no harm. Truly."

We all stare at it - or rather, her. Her skin and eye color are indistingushable; they flow white with the rest of her. Her long hair moves as if there is a eternal wind storm around her head, nothing else on her person moved: not her long flowy skirt, nor her sleeveless choker top, all of which are varying shades of gray. I feel as if I know who this girl is without her having to speak her name.

"Ellie?" I ask, tilting my head for confirmation. Her eyes widen, before she nods solemnly, "did Roman and Geronita talk about me?"

James and Peggy snap out of the horrified trance they are in and nod in unison. "They had only good things to say. They miss you, you know."

"I know," says Ellie, "but I can't go back there."

Peggy stands and crosses her arms. "Why not? Did you do something bad? Do you not want to see them again?!" Her voice raises. She has the tendency to jump to conclusions.

Ellie gasps. "Of course I do," she yells, slightly tearful, "it would be my greatest wish to see them all again! But my boundaries are set. I'm forbidden to set foot in Tesfore ever again. I don't know why; every time I've tried to go, I get pushed back."

"I'm sorry," Peggy says, hanging her head, "that was out of line."

Ellie gives her a small smile, "that's okay. I know you want to be united with your sisters and friends again."

"Did you bring us here?" James asks, standing as well, astonished as to how she knows about our goal. 

"That's right. Just because I can't see _my_ family again doesn't mean you should be separated from _yours_." She approaches the window. "I see things. Your friends are perfectly fine, situated just down the way at Rolley Stout. It's down this tunnel here." She points, and we notice that it's the tunnel we ran away from on our ride here.

"It looks intimidating, I know," she says with a giggle. "It's the way they designed it. Back in those days when King George quartered troops, Geronita said. It's rumored that some of these tunnels actually scared them off and they ran the other way - or they fell into the crevices and never came out. Very few dare to travel through here; this is our most terrifying of the regions we have."

"Gosh," Peggy, James, and I, who has yet to stand, whisper.

"Your friends must be quite the adventurous souls to take this path."

We all nod. Ellie flies out the window. "Hang on," she calls from outside. "This will be quite a ride."

***********************************************************

***James's POV***

"Wake up, James!"

I open my eyes. Alex is tapping on my shoulder. I raise myself up realizing I'm leaning against him.

"We fell asleep again, huh?"

He nods. Then he stands up and crosses over to the window while Peggy, who leans on me, begins to stir.

"Are we here?" she asks groggily. Alex turns from his position.

"I think she brought us to a shelter of some sort," he calls. "Does she want us to go ask for help or something?"

I shrug. "I suppose. Let's go."

All three of us leave the wagon, and Alex carries our stuff. I remember to hit the blue button to turn the wagon back to size and drag it along. (You learn a lot getting crushed under a wagon for some time.)

The shelter appears to be newly crafted, as none of the rocks holding it appear super dusty. We share glances before Peggy reaches over us to knock on the door. We hear nothing for a bit, and then rapid footsteps are heard. The door immediately swings open. We all gasp at the person in the doorway, who seems as equally shocked to see us.

"Aaron??"

( _To be continued..._ )

***********  
* J. Mads *  
***********

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can now check out "In the House of G-Wash", the prequel to this story!
> 
> There's a million things they haven't done, like explaining their huge stunt that led to all this :P


	4. Day 4: To Your Reunion! (And The Hopes That You Survive)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Revelationaries are finally united again! However, all good things come at a price. John, Thomas, and Maria have a bad run-in with some devout neighbors of Rolley Stout.

***Aaron's POV***

I'm sitting at the dining area, reading a book when I hear it. Everyone else is in their rooms, so I'm the only one to really hear it. I raise an eyebrow, shooting a sideways glance at the door. Who would be coming to us? No one even knows we're out here. 

The knocking continues, so I move quickly towards the door and swing it open without thinking. My eyes widen when I suddenly see the three figures huddling at the door and they are just as astonished to see me.

"Aaron??"

I regain my senses for a bit before grabbing them and pulling them inside.

"Alexander, James, Peggy, how did you get here?" I ask as I push the door shut and they all slump onto the couch. "On second thought, I'll let you rest. You must be tired from coming from wherever you did."

They nod wearily, and I turn and head up the stairs.

On the way to my room, I run into Hercules, who has just emerged from his. His eyes are closed as if he were sleepwalking.

"Where did you go, Aaron?" he asks quizzically, but well aware, "you don't look like you went outside."

I tilt my head at this. "What do you mean? I told you I was staying downstairs to read; I didn't go anywhere. Besides, how can you tell, your eyes are still closed."

He chuckles and opens them. "My statement still stands. I heard the door shut, did you open it for no reason?"

I smile. "Let's just say that we got quite the surprises at our door. Everyone's going to freak out when they see them."

Hercules raises an eyebrow. "Should we be worried?"

"Nope," I say, heading into my room as I say this, "give them some more time though. They've come quite a long way."

********************************************

***Hercules's POV***

I raise an eyebrow at Aaron as he smiles and disappears into his room. Who on earth could have come to the door? It's not like we take time to go talk to anyone. And if our hunches are correct, we might actually get beaten if we head out. I tiptoe down the stairs carefully, hoping that Aaron hasn't just screwed us all over.

I gasp. Sprawled out on the couch are James, Peggy, and Alexander. All of them look fairly dusty and tired, and are clinging to one another whilst shivering. Possibly because they were cold. With a small smile, I walk into one of the spare bedrooms and grab the blankets off the bed for now. Then I walk back out and gently toss the blankets over them.

_Wait until the others see them..._

********************************************

***3 hours later***

"OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" screams a voice that can only be Eliza's. She and Thomas are really the only morning people we have, although Maria might make the effort, and today she didn't, and the voice was obviously feminine. 

Rubbing my eyes, I reach for my gray and blue beanie on the nightstand and pull it over my unruly hair, then head down the stairs. Aaron is already downstairs, along with Eliza, who's alternating between hugging and dancing around the trio.

"How did you get here?!"

All three of them bear happily tired expressions. They are, of course, happy to see her, but as Aaron says, they have come a long way, and so I walk up and gently tug Eliza away. She jumps, startled, before turning around and seeing me.

"Liz, they just came from a long journey. They might still be tired." Eliza makes a pouting guilty face that I can't help but laugh at her for.

"Why was Eliza screaming?!"

Thomas comes running down the stairs, his hair even more of a frizzy mess. Today is just not his morning, I guess. He glances around idly until his eyes fall on the couch, and his eyes widen suddenly.

His hand flies to his mouth, not believing it for a second. Before he can respond though, John and Maria come bounding out of the room close by and flying down the hallway. They move gracefully enough, until they trip on a large bag and wagon blocking the path, and go down screaming.

"What the heck are these?!" they both shout, after everyone else laughs at them. "Who left this here?!"

My guess is that Alex, James, and Peg brought it along with them. I walk over to them and help them up, and then gesture to the couch, where the guilty party watches sheepishly. "I believe your guilty party can be found right here."

They widen their eyes before running over to hug them, albeit very carefully.

"When did you get here?" John asks, sitting beside Peggy.

She yawns before answering. "Just a few hours ago, Aaron let us in."

Maria sits beside Alex, and Thomas sits in front of James, on the floor. Aaron and I stay standing as we are; him leaning on the couch, me in the entryway. No one else besides me notices Eliza slip away from the room. Probably to go get Angelica and Lafayette. When she comes twirling in, they're following behind sluggishly, looking annoyed from being disturbed.

"You'd better have a good reason for getting me up this early," Angelica says crabbily, even though it's literally 8.

"Oui," Lafayette moans in agreement. "If there is no good reason, then I am going back to sleep."

Eliza keeps pulling them along. "There IS a good reason! Look!" she says when she stops them in front of the couch. Both of them stare at the couch for a bit, not registering. It's not until all three couch occupants wave at them furiously with sleepy smiles that they realize who they're looking at. They cling onto each other and start jumping up and down while screaming, then stop to run over to the couch and kneel in front of them.

"Are you guys okay?! Where did you go?" asks Angelica, who puts her hands on her face in shock. 

"How did you find your way here? We were sure we would have to go looking for you ourselves for days!" Laf adds, fanning himself for dramatic effect. The trio laughs at this.

"We got some help from some of the people here; they live in another region called Tesfore," Alex explains. "They're really sweet. We stayed over with them for at least a day. But they did tell us to be careful of some of the people here." He stands up, albeit a bit wobbly, and adjusts his glasses before continuing. "This region is called Rolley Stout. Geronita and Roman - the ones who helped us - told us about the war they faced years ago, against you-know-who of all people, and how this was the region that they couldn't really attempt to colonize. Many would try to make the journey and either run away or die trying. It's the scariest of all the many regions, so we have to watch our step."

"King George was down here once?!" Eliza screams, identifying you-know-who in the process. "How lucky they are to be alive right now! We know how he gets when it comes to a battle."

"Oui. How did they survive him all that while back?" Laf questions, standing beside me, tilting his head in wonder. " _We_ can barely deal with him as it is. I can only imagine their suffering."

Angelica comes to stand beside Aaron. "Well, if they can do it, we can," she says. "We've already managed to escape him, and from what Alex said, he wouldn't care to come around this area if many couldn't do it on their own."

All 11 of us fall silent then and enjoy our own thoughts for a while. James breaks the stillness of the room by rising and crossing the room, near Laf and me, to the bag they brought with them. He pulls out a large bowl with a tightly sealed cover across it. It's too tightly sealed for James to do while he's sick, so I offer to open it. As soon as I pull the cover off, a familiar scent of meat fills the room.

"What is that?" asks Angelica, sniffing the air.

"It smells like meat," says John, "but it doesn't smell like any that we know."

Peggy grins proudly. "It's not. This is rock boar, some of their own wildlife. You can only find them on their furthest inner mountaintops. They make it only for special occasions, so I guess we're lucky we came when we did."

"They have their own species?!" Maria exclaims. "That's amazing!"

"My thoughts exactly," says James, who chuckles after her statement. "Can you imagine what King George might have done if he actually won against them?" he says afterwards, suddenly darkening.

I shake my head. "No doubt that we wouldn't be hearing about this rare species by now. And everyone else would probably be more vicious towards us."

Aaron, who has moved away from the conversation moments ago, emerges from the kitchen slowly carrying 11 bowls - 4 on each of his arms and 3 stacked up on his head. The top most bowl is bearing 12 spoons, 11 for eating and 1 for scooping.

"Jesus, Aaron, you could ask for help," John says, jumping up to help him by taking the bowls off his head. Aaron holds still as he passes those three off to me, Laf, and Angie, and then takes 4 more (2 off each arm) for Eliza, Thomas, Maria, and himself. Aaron keeps one of the remaining four and passes the other three along to Alexander, James, and Peggy. Seeing as I have the main bowl, he hands me the scooping spoon and I distribute the soup as evenly as I can. Alex, James and Peg want to take the least because they want us to enjoy more of it. Within seconds we have all devoured the soup and are just lounging about in the sitting room, once again just enjoying each other's company.

********************************************

***8 hours later***

It's now 4 in the afternoon, according to Aaron's watch, which is now hanging by its golden chain on a pin in the sitting room. John, Maria, and Thomas have gone out to our front area to mess around with the wagon (while being careful, of course). The Schuylers are sitting in the dining room, talking to Samuel Seabury and Theodosia Prevost through the walkie talkies (which has multiple channels, they figured out. We all share the third one and he is on the fifth. Theo is on the sixth from one she snuck away from King George). James's reading, Alex's writing, and Laf's watching them on the patio nearby while still enjoying the view. Meanwhile, Aaron and I are going through everyone's rooms and color coordinating their closets with what we have and what they found because we're bored. We've made it through our own rooms and Maria's as well; she only has a few colors in her wardrobe in varying shades anyway. 

We're only halfway through Lafayette's (in hindsight, we should have done his LAST, there's so much!!) when the screams come from outside. We're currently on the second floor, so we come rushing down the stairs just as the front door bangs open (we jumped away in time). Maria, Thomas and John come flying through along with a few darts of some sort. They slam the door shut and turn, causing the Schuylers to stop talking. Alex, James, and Lafayette come inside from the patio. All three of them are crying and they have been bruised badly.

"What happened?!" I cry out, reaching them first. James and Eliza run up after me as each one of us takes a sobbing person in our arms: James has Thomas, Eliza grabs Maria, so I have John. Everyone else looks on in shock and worry, moving closer as they try to stay calm.

"Who did this to you?!" Angelica shrieks, before lowering her tone to not scare them any more. All three of them are looking down, but then they raise their heads to speak.

Maria offers to first, although her voice waivers a bit. "It was the Stauntons."

"Who are they?" asks Eliza, who strokes her back to try and make her feel better.

"They're the crazy next-door neighbors," Thomas supplies, rubbing at his elbow which has a dart sticking out of it. He pulls it out. "We were just minding our own business is all, and the wagon accidentally slips away, right? So we dash over as fast as we can but it already rolled into their side. It's a miracle it didn't trip any traps - seriously, those people went OVERBOARD with the bear and mousetraps. Not to mention ketchup squirting mines and dart launchers as far as their yard would allow! They might as well have added lasers!"

"Let's be glad they didn't," Maria says, shaking in fear.

"Golly! What happened next?" asks Alex. By now, we're all on the floor, on our knees or sitting cross legged. Eliza, James, and I are still holding our respective people. Angelica and Peggy huddle close as they sit in front of us. Alex throws an arm around John and Laf does the same to Maria. Aaron squeezes Thomas's hand for support.

"We knew if we tried to go up and ask for the wagon, they were going to bite our heads off and then some," John says with a shudder. It's hard to concentrate on his words when one of his eyes is swelling shut. He covers it and attempts to keep going. "So we decided to just get the wagon fast and get out. BIG mistake. One step on the property and there was this loud beeping. I think they designed it so only people on the lot can hear, because there is NO WAY you would have missed it otherwise." He suddenly gets more animated, waving his hands about as he talks for effect (what is Alexander doing to us?!), "we panicked and grabbed the wagon as we went. Maria accidentally tripped a trap -" he pauses to let her show us the jagged mark left behind, followed by the dry blood streaked across (or maybe ketchup? We can't tell...) "- and Thomas and I stumbled on some hidden buttons in the lawn which triggered the darts. We heard laughing and then next thing they were throwing RAZORS!" All three of them turn to the side to show that parts of their hair are now, indeed, missing. 

"Oh god..." I say, covering my mouth with my hands. "What are we going to do?! It's official: we can't stay here in Rolley Stout!"

"But we don't really know of any other regions except Tesfore," says James, "and we might not even be that safe there. Geronita and Roman mentioned that they sometimes experience random raids from here or Yuletide Gardens."

All of us look at each other in exasperated fear. "We're going to end up dead before we bring any justice to the Surface," Aaron mutters with a sigh. "What do we do then? Are we supposed to try and tame these crazy neighbors or find somewhere else that might be as protected but risk getting attacked?!"

"We might have to sleep on that idea," I say, yawning suddenly. "We've been at this for literally _hours_. We need to rest."

Everyone nods in agreement. John and Maria head off to their conjoined room in the nearby hall while Alex heads to his, across from the kitchen. The rest of us stumble upstairs. Aaron turns into his room, first on the left by the stairs. Eliza and Peggy have theirs in the farthest end of the hall. Thomas and James choose the two in the mini hall by the patio for easy access when they need it. Angelica and Lafayette turn back to their room which is in another tiny hall on its own. I turn and go into my room, on the right of the steps across from Aaron.

Lying in bed with my beanie back on the bedside table, I'm not sure what I think is the best option. We're not exactly sure on the potential of these people (although John, Maria and Thomas have just gotten experience and Alex, James and Peg may have and just don't want to tell us) and who knows what similar treachery may lie ahead?!

It's not easy to sleep with thoughts so haunting dancing inside your brain.

\- Mulligan -

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I thought of "Satisfied" when I wrote the title :P


	5. Day 5: Future Flash and Kibble County (Part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Residents of the legendary Kibble County start plaguing the dreams of Hercules and Aaron. When Angelica and Lafayette call them out on it, all four of them suddenly end up in a town of hyper intelligent canines. What now?!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Someone PLEASE TELL ME what the heck this turned into >.<
> 
>  
> 
> ALso, I feel the need to split this up

_We know why you're running. We know why you're here. Why you're REALLY here. We know you can't stick around in Rolley Stout much longer. They'll get you. They'll kill you. Do you want that? Huh? Don't you want to expose your king for the vermin he is?_

_I stare, wide eyed, at the shadow people in the camouflaged outfits, the only thing clear on them. They have no faces; it's blacked out like the rest of them. How do they know all this?! Not sure what to say. I slowly start to approach them... they encircle me with anticipation..._

_Come to Kibble County. Don't worry. We won't hurt you. You'll be safe. Oh, won't you come to us, Mulligan? Won't you and your friends come to us?_

I immediately wake up screaming and end up holding my head in my hands. What the heck was that all about?!

Aaron bursts into my room moments later. "Jesus, Herc, what's wrong?! Why are you screaming?!" he snaps with bloodshot eyes, rubbing his forehead. "It's 3 in the morning!"

"Terrible... nightmare... creepy... people... they know..." I'm hyperventilating as I say this. Aaron immediately softens and changes his tone and walks over to my bed, where I'm now clutching the covers and hiding my face in them.

"Hey... I'm sorry, I really shouldn't have snapped like that," he says, in a softer tone. "Calm down... Now, what was the nightmare about? Who are 'they' and what do they know?"

I lift my face, turning to look at him. "All I saw were some random people, with no detail whatsoever, but they somehow knew my name. They insisted they knew what we did up there." Aaron stiffens at this; he knows what I mean by 'up there'. "They kept saying that they knew - about the incident, why we're here, and why we can't be here any longer. They mentioned some place called Kibble County, and that we would be safe there."

He raises an eyebrow. "That's random. And creepy. But why are they only plaguing you?"

I can only shrug. "What do you think it means?"

"I don't know. But what I do know is that you might want to get some sleep because then you get tired at random bouts and fall forward. Trust me, you don't want that."

"Heh, you're probably right. Sorry for waking you," I add as soon as Aaron gets to the door.

He gives a small smile. "Better me than Angie or Laf. We know how they are when they don't get their full amounts of sleep."

I shudder after he shuts the door. Having a sleep deprived Angelica and/or Lafayette is absolutely terrifying. Especially if they have been in the kitchen before being disturbed, because they both sleepwalk afterwards. Let's just say that John and I are now extremely terrified to be in a kitchen anywhere near them now.

I sigh as I try to lie back down and go to sleep. I end up staring at the auburn colored ceiling until I pass out. I honestly hope for no more weird dreams.

********************************************

Careful what you hope for.

This time I'm woken by a scream that's not mine. I jolt up in bed, realizing that not much time has passed since my own outburst, according to the lighting at my window (don't ask me how day and night works down here - I have no idea!!). I'm about to lie back down when I hear someone call my name in a waivery voice from the hall.

"Hercules, get in here!"

I put on my beanie and race to my door. I open it and step out into the hall, not sure who calls and therefore unsure of what room to go into. Only when I hear the whimpers from the door in front of me do I realize that Aaron is the source of the sound. Quietly, I open the door.

The room is in a state of disarray, as I notice when I trip over some blankets lying in the doorway. After standing up I note the lack of Aaron in the vicinity.

"Aaron, where are you?" I call out.

"Here..." comes a voice from the far end of the bed, in a crevice by the wall. I crawl on the bed and look over. Aaron's head is down, and he's hugging his knees while shaking violently in fear. As soon as my shadow is cast over him, he looks up at me, eyes puffy and red from previously crying.

I gasp. "Aaron! Are you okay?!"

He covers his mouth to try muffling his sobs, shaking his head. "I'm sorry, now I've woken _you_ up..."

I reach down and lift him onto his bed, which is mostly mattress with the bedsheets hanging onto one edge. "Don't apologize, it's okay. Now... why did YOU wake up so suddenly?"

Aaron blushes and looks down again. "Same reason as you... I got some weird dreams like you got, but much worse."

"Worse?" I ask, raising an eyebrow. "How?"

He refuses to look up so I tilt his head up to look at me. He bites his lip before starting. "None of them had any eyes..." he says. I know he means the faceless figures. "They told me, 'Oh Burr, you can't be indecisive any longer, you'll have to make a decision someday, right? So why don't you convince your friends to come to Kibble County with us? Tell them you'll be safer. You know what happens if you stay... right?' And then I heard barking... and all of these dogs came out of nowhere trying to get me; it was endless!" Once again, he's shaking, and I have to hold him steady. Aaron's been terrified of dogs ever since Samuel's old one attacked him. (We knew it wasn't his fault, it was Lee's, but he still respected that Aaron wouldn't want to be near the dog again.)

We hold this position for a while, even when Angelica and Lafayette come in looking like they're about to yell at us, probably because we woke them, and they soften their gazes when they see him and I'm shaking my head ever so slightly letting them know that we're sorry and now is not the time for such advances. They simply approach us and join the comfort hug, and there we stay until 5 in the morning when Alex comes in and merely tells us breakfast is ready and doesn't question us.

********************************************

***Angelica's POV***

We have a theory. 

Something's really fishy between Aaron and Hercules.

No, we're not going to say they're maybe possibly secretly dating. (We already have a running bet on that. Lafayette and I say they are, Alex and Maria say they're not.) 

(~~~note: can you guys just NOT bet on us?? - Hercules)

But still, him and I notice the forlorn yet knowing looks they shoot at each other from across the room over our breakfast of honeydew juice and regular bacon. And the only reason we suspect something is because of us crashing into Aaron's room earlier. (That embrace of theirs totally saved them from a yelling by the way; also Alex and Maria are about to eat their words like a snake eats a man-cub.)

Every time Laf or I try to approach them with the question of why they act this way, they brush it off. All the others think we're crazy, but trust me, we're not. It goes back and forth like this for a couple of hours until everyone else decides to go hunting towards Tesfore for the day (Alex, James, and Peggy want to introduce everyone to Roman and Geronita while they're out there and FAR AWAY from those psycho Stauntons) leaving the four of us in the house alone. As soon as Herc and Aaron invent some half-thought excuse to get upstairs and away from the board game we are playing currently, Lafayette and I choose then to jump on them.

"Okay, what is up with you two?!" I yell at them. They're already halfway up the steps when they turn and freeze in their tracks at my voice. Well, Hercules turns; Aaron doesn't.

"Nothing's up with us..." Herc says with uncertainty. He doesn't move up, but he's not moving down either. 

"You cannot fool us, we know you are hiding something," Laf says calmly, crossing his arms. "Why will you not just tell us what it is?"

"It's stupid," says Aaron with a shake of his head. He takes another step up the stairs. "Just drop it, okay?"

In that one sentence he utters, I finally snap. I make the trip to the stairs from the sitting area (about a good 5-10 meters away) in two strides, grab Aaron by his shirt back, and yank him down the stairs past Hercules without dropping him. Then I spin him around, grab him by the front of his shirt, and raise him so he is eye level with me since I have a foot and a half on him.

"We're not dropping this," I snap. "You two have been more noticeably on edge today. Want to explain to us what that's all about before Lafayette and I unleash the morning terror that you were saved from earlier today?"

Aaron starts to shake a bit, and Hercules chooses now to react. "Stop it!" he yells at me, yanking Aaron away from me in the process. He shakes a finger at me. "Not everything is your problem to solve, Angelica."

"Don't twist my own words back on me!" I yell at him (A/N: In the House of G-Wash, Chapter 3). "And why are you avoiding the subject?! We can literally just talk this out!" 

Lafayette comes up to me from behind and rests a hand on my shoulder. "Angelica, perhaps we should just leave them? They seem fine now, don't they? We can ask them later."

I swat his hand off, and he shrinks back. "No, Laf! I'm not letting this go!"

"Why not?!" snaps Aaron. He twists out of my grip.

All four of us are going at it at this point. Herc and I are the most animated of them all. Aaron shrinks back to his indifference and Lafayette is still trying to play peacemaker. Pretty sure we go at it for 10 minutes before a large crash and flash from outside distracts us all. All four of us steal a glance towards the door, and then back at one another.

"What was that?" Herc asks, after a long silence.

I drop my hands and look at Aaron. We both shrug. Lafayette heads toward the door and peeks out, only to to stumble back after a couple of seconds. He regains his footing and turns towards the rest of us.

"I cannot see anything," he concludes, pulling his navy blue fuzzy robe together. "Some thing is blocking the way. It looks like light."

"Light?" Aaron repeats, joining Laf at the door. "Oh, he's right! Come look at this, guys!"

Herc and I join them at the door. We don't even have to peek out. The light seems to have gotten stronger in the form of a tiny beam now pouring out onto the floor.

Aaron and Herc exchange nervous glances and I try not to lose my cool. Obviously this must be part of what's bothering them so badly. Despite my hesitation, I reach out and touch my hand to the knob.

"Wait!" They both grab my hand and yank it away. 

I take my hand back. "Look, if you don't want to tell us what's up, fine. But I'm finding out what's out there whether you like it or not." With that I fling open the door. The light engulfs the whole area in front of our house and we can't see anything beyond it. On the ground is some sort of metal disk, widening itself until it seems as wide as one of us. I looked back at the guys.

"What is that?!" asks Laf. 

"Looks like some sort of teleport," says Herc. "I remember watching something about that in that movie _Tomorrow's Future_. Apparently you step on one and end up on another."

Aaron looks uneasy. "But we don't even know where this other one is, if there is one. Do we really want to chance where we might end up? And what were you watching that for, anyway?"

Herc shrugs. "I was bored. In any event, what's the harm in trying to find out what's on the other side?"

No one gets a chance to answer; suddenly, giant metal arms shoot out of the machine and grab each one of us. The teleport turns open to reveal a varying purple and blue swirling oblivion. And, without warning, they throw us in, one after the other; first Herc, then Aaron, then Laf, and finally me. All of us start screaming as we're flung towards endless swirls of color.

_How far does this thing go?!_

********************************************

"Is this... kibble?!"

After a couple of hours (according to Aaron's watch) we've finally fallen out of the abyss into what I believe is mud until his indignant shriek. As soon as I sniff the air, I believe he may be right.

"'Welcome to Kibble County'?? Are we still under or are we back up there now??" Lafayette, who has landed on top of a wooden sign, tilts his head in confusion as he moves to read it.

Herc rises up from the bridge that he has fallen on, shaking kibble out of his beanie. "Alex told me about this legend. It's rumored that dogs with the intelligence of humans live out here, on the far skirts of the Underground, after cruel mistreatment from their owners. But that was years ago. Imagine if any of them were still out here."

He gives a sharp cry as he is suddenly engulfed within a net. Laf, Aaron (only a foot away from me) and I jump to our feet, running over to him, going between being extremely concerned for him and insanely confused by wherever the heck the net even came from.

"Imagine indeed, Mulligan."

A low voice from nowhere makes us all jump. The only other living thing we see besides us in the near vicinity is a black and white spotted dog nearing up on us. But if you're about to tell me that that dog is the one who just spoke to us, then I'm about to call you out on ALL doses of insanity.

"All doses of insanity, huh? Well, Miss Angelica, I'm afraid that you're the only insane one I see here."

I scream. Why do they know I thought that? And how do they know my name?!

"Who are you? And how did you know our names?" Herc asks cautiously, still under the net, to the dog that has made their way up to us. They don't say anything, merely remove the net from over Hercules and motion for us to follow them with their tail.

********************************************

***Aaron's POV****

Can things get any stranger?!

Like besides the fact that the so called fabled city Herc told us about is evidently REAL at this point.

The four of us humans are sitting on a platform in the middle of Cinnamon Hall, appropriately named for the smell it gives off. Surrounding us are dogs of many breeds, sitting inside jury chairs. Some of them have fixed sharp glares upon us (it's REAAAAALLY weird that I can tell....). Others are just barking as loud as they can. And all the while they're staring as us in a way I can't place as fascination or disgust. (Sometimes you just can't tell.)

"Why are we here?" Lafayette asks.

"Did you not get our messages?" asks the dog who brought us here. "We know you're not safe in Rolley Stout, we were beckoning you over on purpose."

I stiffen and so does Hercules. Angelica shoots a sharp glare toward us both and Lafayette raises a brow curiously.

"Boys?" he asks. "Do you know something that we do not? What are these alleged 'messages' that they speak of?"

We look at each other nervously before sighing. Might as well tell them before we somehow do even MORE damage.

"Yes," I say. "Hercules and I got some strange dreams from them today. Telling us to come and then showing us dangers of staying anywhere else."

"What?!" Angelica snaps. She jumps up from her spot and points at both of us. "You knew about this?!"

I cringe, unsure of what to say. Hercules buries his face in his hands. Lafayette looks at the ground. Meanwhile, Angelica starts parading around the stage whilst ranting once more.

"I can't believe you didn't tell anyone about this! Especially because it seemed that we were supposed to be informed! Did you think you could just brush this off?!" She stops and parks herself right in front of me. "It's your fault why we're in this mess and left the others behind! Do you ever stop to think about how withholding information like this might affect other people?!"

That's when something snaps inside of me. I jump up from my own position and push Angelica back. She stumbles but not enough to trip and hit the floor. "In what way is this our fault if you're the one who open the door and exposed us to their teleporter in the first place?!" I scream at her.

Angelica rushes forward, probably to attack, but doesn't get the chance as a blond and white haired dog body checks her off to the side. 

"That's enough, Lilly," says the dog who brought us here. Lilly raises her head and squints. "Now as for you four," he says, "if you're going to cause trouble here we won't hesitate to call UnderPatrol and have you carted off to the Deeper."

I turn to him. "What is that?"

"It's where all criminals and hindrances go, for extreme punishment," says Lilly. "It's been a while since they carted anyone off; the last case was a year ago. They took three kids and one of them didn't live through the trip down alone. They were locals; what makes you think you'd be able to survive those cruel and grueling odds?"

All four of us look at each other in horror. We don't say any more words.

"Are we done with them, K.J.?" Lilly says, to the dog who took us here. "They're more trouble than they seem to be, no? We have to keep an eye on them."

"Indeed we do," says K.J., and stomps a paw on the ground. A rope apparates into his mouth and it extends towards us, having already ensnared us by our wrists. "Come along, now."

Doom is imminent, isn't it...

```A. Burr```

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like I said, I SUCK at romance, but if you want to try and start shipping characters in your head, you do you :P

**Author's Note:**

> If you didn't know the friend groups, here they are:
> 
> The Revolutionary Set: Alex, John, Laf, and Herc
> 
> The Schuyler Sisters: Angie, Eliza, and Peggy
> 
> Southern Mother-F**king Democratic Republicans (correct me if I'm wrong): Aaron, Thomas, and James
> 
> (And then Maria is technically by herself)
> 
> The Revelationaries: All 11 of them.
> 
> Kingdom Come: Charles, Samuel, Theodosia, and King George (not that the former three had much of a choice)


End file.
